Will Trump's Deal of the Century succeed?

ONE of the main problems in US President Donald Trump's plan to bring about peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians became obvious when he unveiled his so-called Deal of the Century in Washington on Tuesday: one of the two sides expected to take part in the anticipated negotiations is apparently not planning to show up for the talks.

President Trump has created high expectations in the Middle East when he announced upon entering office in 2017 that he would succeed where his predecessors had failed, by achieving a diplomatic coup in brokering a peace agreement between the Jews and the Arabs who have been fighting for more than a century over control of the Holy Land.

The author of The Art of the Deal pledged to press both sides to make the necessary painful concessions, insisting that his legendary negotiating skills will help overcome their differences - rooted in history, culture and religion - that have made it next to impossible to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.